Report of the Chancellor's Minority Review Committee
March 9, 2000
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The University's Board of Trustees has determined that the University is dedicated to extending knowledge-based services and other resources of the University to all citizens of North Carolina . The Faculty Council has declared that diversity of students, faculty, and staff is essential to educational excellence and to the University's accomplishment of its educational mission. Since 1951, when it was ordered by the courts to stop excluding students because of their race, the University, with varying degrees of success, energy, and commitment has been pursuing aspects of a minority affairs and diversity policy.
Notwithstanding recommendations reiterated for over three decades, the Committee finds that the University has not institutionalized effective measures and has not taken fully effective steps to implement its minority affairs and diversity policy. The University's efforts to date present a mixed picture of limited progress, counter-balanced by substantial deficiencies.
The University faces challenges that make pursing its minority affairs and diversity objectives more difficult. These challenges include demands for greater "accountability," inadequate resources, uncertainties in the law, enrollment pressures, and changing demographics. In addition, the University has a very decentralized decision-making structure. The challenges and the decentralized structure mean that the Chancellor must be firmly committed to minority affairs and diversity objectives. The Chancellor also must set a clear expectation that all units will attain high achievement in implementing the University's minority affairs and diversity policy.
In order for the University to successfully implement its diversity and minority affairs policy, four key functions must be carried out effectively. These functions are coordinating, advising, monitoring, and advocating. Each of these functions must be carried out in each of three minority affairs and diversity programming areas. These programming areas are: recruiting and admitting students and hiring faculty and staff; retention of students, faculty, and staff; and achieving a good quality of life on campus. The Committee finds instances of significant shortcomings in the execution of the four functions in all of the programming areas.
To address the shortcomings and deficiencies, the Committee proposes measures that will enable the University to implement more effectively, throughout the decentralized campus in an institutionalized and systematic manner, its minority affairs and diversity policy.
The Committee recommends that the University:
- Conduct a systematic and thorough university-wide minority affairs assessment utilizing national standards;
- Develop a university-wide action plan;
- Formulate annual reports on the state of minority affairs at the university;
- Develop performance funding incentives for minority affairs activities;
- Designate a senior level administrator to be the University's and Chancellor's principal advisor on minority affairs reporting directly to the Chancellor and serving on the Chancellor's Cabinet;
- Charge the senior level administrator with the functions and duties of (a) collecting and analyzing data, (b) evaluating and reporting, (c) coordinating; (d) advising; (e) monitoring; and (f) advocating;
- Provide to the senior level administrator adequate power and resources to effectively carry out the duties set forth; and
- Undertake several recommended strategic efforts to more effectively achieve its minority affairs and diversity policy.